Abaco Island

Abaco Island is an islet in the northern Bahamas, located 180 miles east of south Florida. The island was discovered by Spanish explorer Amerigo Vespucci during his four-month voyage in 1499-1500, and the island was originally known as "Habacoa". Abaco became home to 1,500 exiled American loyalists after the end of the American Revolutionary War in 1783, and they built the town of Carleton (now Hope Town). In 2010, Abaco Island had a population of 17,224 people.